1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to the field of lightweight structural barriers, and in particular barriers that are compact in a normal state and are extendable to several times the normal state automatically, or upon demand, to provide a visible and structural barrier for a variety of useful purposes. More particularly, the present invention relates to barriers that are deployed and maintained in an active rigid state, will yield when subjected to an excessive force and will immediately recover to the rigid state upon removal of the force, without either sustaining damage or imparting damage to the source of the force.
2. Description of the Related Art
Presently, flexible barriers are a compromise between structural rigidity, mass, size and effectiveness. Deployed by traditional means, these barriers may be structurally rigid but not yield sufficiently upon excessive force to prevent self-destruction, or to avoid imparting damage to the source of the force. Conversely, some flexible barriers may be sufficiently flexible to avoid sustaining damage from an excessive force applied thereto or damaging a source of a contacting force, but are not self-supporting or adequately effective. Such known flexible barriers are not satisfactory for many applications.
Although not related to flexible barriers based upon known techniques and applications, two particular situations exist which have not been satisfactorily resolved by the prior art. The first situation relates to safety in the operation of a school bus. It is well known that school children are exposed to great risk of being struck by a moving vehicle when boarding or disembarking from a school bus. The traditional solution has been to employ a warning system when a school bus is stopped to load or unload passengers. The warning system typically includes flashing lights and a suggestive stop sign. Such warning systems, however, have not proven entirely effective in alerting other drivers and keeping them from passing a stopped school bus that is boarding or discharging passengers, even with the threat of criminal prosecution for violating the law prohibiting such passing, resulting in avoidable risk of injury and death to children boarding or disembarking from the school bus.
The second situation relates to safety in the operation of a semi-tractor trailer combination rig, or similarly long vehicles. Such vehicles have a larger turning radius than most vehicles and thus require a xe2x80x9cswing-spacexe2x80x9d for performing a right-hand turn. Typically, a prominent, graphic warning is displayed on the rear of such vehicles to alert other vehicles that they should not enter the swing-space when the vehicle is performing a right-hand turn. Again, the warning has not proven entirely effective in alerting other drivers and keeping them from entering the swing-space resulting in numerous, avoidable accidents.
The inventors are aware of several air pressure actuated signals useful for indicating an intention of a vehicle operator to change direction (e.g., turn, switch lanes). While these known signals appear to be related to the present invention, such signals do not contemplate solutions to the above-mentioned situations, but merely provide a visual indication of an intention to change direction. Moreover, such signals do not provide an actual structural barrier and have various drawbacks.
The known devices are presumably designed to stop vehicular traffic in these situations, but only provide visual warnings which are insufficient in practice. The known devices are at best suggestive and are not realistically intended to, and therefore do not, create a barrier to the passage of vehicles. Therefore, a need exists to provide an actual barrier to deter other vehicles from passing a stopped school bus and entering the swing-space of a long vehicle.
It is an object of the present invention to present a highly visible, rigid structure that is an undeniable barrier to the passage of vehicular traffic attempting to pass a stopped school bus that is boarding or discharging passengers and is displaying the traditional, suggestive, flashing lights and stop sign. Likewise, it is a further object of the invention to provide a similar undeniable barrier to common vehicular traffic that disregards the graphic warning displayed on the rear of the trailer of a semi-tractor trailer combination rig, or similarly long vehicles, and advances into the space to the right of such large vehicles, necessarily created as they prepare to negotiate a right hand turn. (Of course, right and left descriptions are reversed for countries where vehicles normally travel along roads to the left of center.)
The apparatus described herein is an improvement over existing types of lightweight barriers, and combines the advantageous characteristics of rigidity, flexibility, and extendibility. The structure of the present invention is lightweight, self-supporting, damage resistant, non-damaging, compact in the normal state, and of simple, economical construction and operation.
The novel design of this invention, uniquely combines rigidity, extendibility, flexibility, visibility, and is lightweight, scaleable, self-supporting, damage resistant, non-damaging, compact in the normal state, and is of simple, economical construction, and operation. This invention represents an unquestionable application of new art that necessarily improves safety in the applications described, and presents a wealth of new application opportunities in the areas of amusement, entertainment, industry and others. This invention comprises a device that can be activated automatically, or upon demand, by simple, cost effective means, presents an indisputable, self-supporting structural barrier, can tolerate abuse and assume little or no harmful effects, is non-damaging, constructed of common materials, and is easily integrated into a variety of applications. For these reasons and more, this invention clearly demonstrates improvements over the current state of the art of lightweight barriers.
The present invention contemplates a flexible structural barrier which is made of a flexible material arranged to form a generally tubular collapsible structure when an appropriate air flow is establish therethrough. The flexible structural barrier is normally in a collapsed condition and is extended to an extended condition by the appropriate air flow, either automatically or upon demand. The invention may include an air flow source which is connected in fluid communication with the flexible material and is adapted to establish the appropriate air flow through the flexible material. The invention may also include a return mechanism which is arranged to retract the flexible material from the extended condition to the collapsed condition when the air flow is stopped or not established.